1945 Division member here, awesome work on the coverage on the final weeks of the war in Europe. It got me thinking about the Points episode of Band of Brothers and I remember it being mentioned about the possibility of SS forces resiting the Allied occupation with guerilla warfare. I know the unconditional surrender happens soon but how concerned was Allied command about this happening regardless of the surrender?
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Outside of a very few fanatics hiding in the mountains, Nazi Guerilla warfare was pretty much non-existent. And oh for a few months they were very concerned about the mostly non-existent werwolf program.
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True but it wasn’t a non reasonable fear as the crazed fanatics in Berlin showed by keep throwing small kids in a completely hopeless battle. My grandparents had this experience of being in a labor camp with the Germans dreaming still about the “endsieg” and German Mothers who consoled themselves that her sons went to heaven as he died fighting the Jews and Athiest.
The werewolves came lateler in stealing Jewish possessions and the total refusal to return those to the family of the owners.
Also I think that most of the German men were in POW/ Gulags or dead. And because they kept fighting to the last most of the cities were blown to smithereens.
Even my grandfather who was Dutch and pulled into the Arbeitseinsatz became a POW until he got to talk to an American who was born in Antwerp and spoke Dutch. Afterwards he was released. He did get the best meal ever from the Americans, eggs floating in fat (still as a POW). The Germans were treated much better than the Germans ever treated their POWs.
Also e.g. the Mayor of Aachen was assassinated AND lots of Germans committed suicide after losing including young ones missing out on the 50s and 60s I guess :-(!
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